Chapter 39: Building with Latex

Within a week after Julián’s drone epiphany, Willie and Tricia were deeply involved in Operation Trey. With the money flowing, they brought in to Willie’s house a group of volunteer specialists to create a miracle.

Tricia’s bosom was the first problem. Her breasts were so full that binding her chest (with a tight strap) produced an unworkable result. Instead, they tried another approach. She was not a particularly large woman, but her shoulders were comparatively broad, and that gave them an idea. One of the group was known for making latex masks and prosthetics for local amateur horror movies.

They built a multi-part appliance that fit over and expanded her shoulders and upper chest. In front, it was built-up enough to merge with the upper slopes of her breasts, to simulate manly pectoral muscles. Another appliance went underneath them, simulating prominent ribs then sloping severely down towards her belly. The latex pieces wouldn’t look real to the naked eye, but under clothing, the effect was profound.

Like Gabe, Tricia-as-Trey looked like an inverted pyramid or a competitive bodybuilder with big shoulders, a barrel chest, and a narrow waist. They couldn’t make her butt smaller, but in a properly fitted business suit, she made a very powerful impression.

Since the appliances were so unrealistic, they spent no time trying to make them blend into Tricia’s skin color or feather the edges to blur the transition between the appliance and real skin. This saved an enormous amount of time.

Once she was fully “enhanced,” a tailor came in to make precise measurements and alter three different colored business suits and shirts that would fit over Trey’s massive musculature and minimize her hips and butt.

A makeup artist showed how to create a realistic “5 o’clock shadow” and fluffed up her eyebrows to make them look more masculine.

A trans man, Alan, spent hours coaching Tricia on the nuances of manly behavior. They covered all kinds of topics, and they rehearsed, and role-played.

Alan mentioned things like how to sit (knees apart), how to chat (boys sit side by side, looking out, while girls sit facing each other). How to talk (lower register, short sentences, stronger, assertive tone), when to talk (not half as much), and why to talk (never about feelings or emotions). All these were stereotypes, but the point is that the public man is different from the private man.

“This is a role, it’s acting,” said Alan. “Maleness is not your identity; you are NOT transgender, and you do not have gender dysphoria. Trey, when this is over, you won’t be clinging to this manly persona, you won’t be regretting your femininity. You’ll put away your suits, the latex appliances, the tighty-whities.”